Outlaws & Legends Music Festival well attended

Mark Powell of Abilene, Texas talks about how he found a permanent home for his Outlaws & Legends Music Festival,
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Dwight Yoakam's blue jeans and cowboy hat attire contrasted with his bandmates, who were more flashier during Yoakam's closing set Saturday at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival.(Photo11: Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News)Buy Photo

After all, it had been nonstop Thursday through early Sunday morning for the guy who runs the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival.

"It was great," he said, sounding a little worn out over the phone.

Powell didn't have the final attendance number, he said, but the eighth annual event felt like the biggest yet. With no drama from Mother Nature and greater pre-event interest, the two-day festival at the Back Porch of Texas in northwest Abilene was full of music fans from the start.

He did say that Friday's attendance exceeded the best Saturday to date. And that Saturday was bigger than Friday.

In 2017, about 8,300 paid admission to the event headlined by Mark Chesnutt.

"We want to get really, really accurate numbers," he said. "But we had the best Saturday we've had."

This year's headliner was Dwight Yoakam, and the place still was packed for his 9:30 p.m. show Saturday.

Powell said space was created for 60 more RVs, pushing that total past 350. He believes the site can accommodate 400 next year.

"That's our built-in crowd," he said. RVers begin arriving Thursday and provide a good audience for the opening acts Friday while other attendees come in from the road or after work.

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Dwight Yoakam holds his guitar high, one of his signature performance moves, during his set Saturday evening at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival. Yoakam played many of his hits and a tribute to the late Merle Haggard, another Outlaws show headliner. Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News

Dwight Yoakam's blue jeans and cowboy hat attire contrasted with his bandmates, who were more flashier during Yoakam's closing set Saturday at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival. Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News

Dwight Yoakam may not have seen how many fans he was singing to Saturday evening, but there were thousands, now and then illuminated by cellphones at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival. Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News

Dwight Yoakam played hits such as "Streets of Bakersfield," "Honky Tonk Man" and "A Thousand Miles from Nowhere" during his full-out set before thousands of fans Saturday evening at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival. Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News

Bubba Crabtree, 5, strums along with the onstage band with his autographed guitar Friday during the Outlaws & Legends music festival March 23, 2018. This is the 8th year for the event which will feature dozens of country performances. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Stephenville's Koe Wetzel performs with his band Friday during the Outlaws & Legends music festival at the Back Porch of Texas March 23, 2018. This was the 8th year for the event which features dozens of country acts. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

The Koe Wetzel band performs during Friday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 23, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day festival held at Abilene's Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Crowds listen to Gary P. Nunn perform during Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day Abilene event held at the Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

A breeze blows through the performance stage and tossles the hair of Ray Wylie Hubbard, who played Friday evening at the Outlaws & Legends Music Festival. Hubbard was inducted into the event's hall of fame later in his set by organizer Mark Powell. Greg Jaklewicz/Reporter-News

Gary P. Nunn performs Saturday during the Outlaws & Legends music festival at the Back Porch of Texas March 24, 2018. Thousands turned out for the 8th annual festival which featured dozens of musical acts over three days. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Moses Rangel of Richmond performs from the balcony behind the stage during Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival at Abilene's Back Porch of Texas March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day event. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Shawn Kannetieter of Dallas raises his beer and cigar to Gary P. Nunn during Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day event at Abilene's Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Crowds listen to Gary P. Nunn perform during Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day Abilene event held at the Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Barbara Goodman and Cody Russell lean against the concrete blocks surrounding the stage while listening to Gary P. Nunn perform at Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day event held at Abilene's Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Crowds listen to Gary P. Nunn perform during Saturday's Outlaws & Legends music festival March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day Abilene event held at the Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Couples dance during the Gary P. Nunn performance Saturday March 24, 2018 at the Outlaws & Legends music festival. This was the 8th year for the three-day Abilene event. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Gracie Yates, 10, give a piggy-back ride to her friend Abigail Stark, 9, who was visiting from College Station. The girls were with their families at the Outlaws & Legends music festival Saturday March 24, 2018. This was the 8th year for the three-day event at Abilene's Back Porch of Texas. Ronald W. Erdrich/Reporter-News

Temperatures were in the 80s both days, and Friday's breezy conditions were not a factor.

"Oh man," Powell said of the weather, which is risky this time of the year. "We had enough people praying behind the scenes."

The acts stayed on schedule and there were few sound issues, he said. He also was pleased that the two-lane exit plan devised to speed up traffic flow worked well both nights.

Powell said sets by Phil Hamilton and Gary P. Nunn, who had two new band members and a different show, were two of the most impressive in his mind. He also rated Friday night's headliner Reckless Kelly, Erica Perry and Josh Ward as spot-on.

When does he start thinking about next year's lineup?

"I am going to hibernate for about a month," he said, "then start figuring it out."

There is a recipe to blending acts that appeal both to singular audiences and a wider range of fans. Still, there are artists he has tried to bring in but has not because of scheduling.

Personally, a show by John Prine, who won the Hall of Fame award at the 2015 Grammys, would make his day.